(Originally presented during a DNN webinar, "How to Engage B2B Marketers Using Social Media" - http://www.dnnsoftware.com/About/Resources/Webinars/view/webinar/cid/422183)
If you’re a B2B marketer or a marketer that sells to these highly coveted decision makers, this presentation provides data-driven insights that may interest you.
We reveal critical insights you can apply to better reach and engage B2B marketers on social media. By incorporating these insights into your marketing playbook, you’ll answer questions like:
1) Which social networks and platforms should you be active on?
2) What topics should you build your content marketing strategy around?
3) Which publications should you leverage for PR and online advertising?
4) What are the top B2B vendors doing right, and how can you do it right too?
5) How can you become more influential with B2B marketers?
These strategies reflect the findings of a recent report prepared by Leadtail in collaboration with DNN, which summarizes the activity of 500 B2B marketers on Twitter from June 1 to August 31, 2013.
1. How to Engage B2B Marketers
Using Social Media
Dennis Shiao
Karri Carlson
@DNNCorp
1
Carter Hostelley
@Leadtail
@Leadtail
2. About
Develop Social Media Strategies and Insights for Decision Makers
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Leadtail B2B Marketers Social Insights Report – September 2013
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3. How We Generated Social Media Insights
• Twitter as proxy for social media activity
• Twitter activity of 500 North American
B2B marketers (manager and up)
• Over 90-day period: June 1 to Aug 31, 2013
• Analyzed 113,039 tweets and 70,245 links
• Total follower reach: 1,156,532
• Median number of followers: 894
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4. Key Question:
How do B2B marketers describe themselves on
social media?
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Leadtail B2B Marketers Social Insights Report – September 2013
5. Top Bio Keywords Used by B2B Marketers
Based on keywords used in the Twitter profile.
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6. Actionable Insights
• B2B marketers use their Twitter profiles to describe who they are
professionally and personally
Recommendation:
Consider social bio keywords when developing your buyer
personas, marketing copy, and direct sales approach
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7. Key Question:
Which social networks are B2B marketers active on?
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Leadtail B2B Marketers Social Insights Report – September 2013
8. Top Social Networks Used for Twitter Cross-Posting
Twitter
100%
LinkedIn
35%
Instagram
18%
Foursquare
13%
Vine
Paper.li
Facebook
8%
5%
3%
Pinterest
2%
Quora
2%
Spotify
1%
Tumblr
1%
% of B2B Marketers that shared between this network + Twitter during the report period.
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9. Actionable Insights
• B2B marketing pros are active on a number of social networks
including many that cross-post to Twitter
• Though LinkedIn is most popular, it isn’t all work and no play as B2B
marketers also use Instagram, Foursquare, and Vine
Recommendation:
Don’t limit yourself to LinkedIn when looking to reach and engage
B2B marketers
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11. Top Hashtags Used by B2B Marketers
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12. Actionable Insights
• Popular hashtags reveal which topics and events are catching
the attention of B2B marketers
• These include broad topics, specific events, and local and
national news
Recommendation:
Consider hashtags when developing content marketing, deciding
which events to invest in, and what topics to engage in
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13. Key Question:
What content sources do B2B marketers most
engage with?
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Leadtail B2B Marketers Social Insights Report – September 2013
14. Content Sources Shared by B2B Marketers
eCommerce
(e.g. Amazon)
1%
• Industry media sites are the
most common source of content
shared
• The majority of mainstream
media content shared is
business and strategy focused
Mainstream
Media
25%
Industry
Media
62%
• Social media platforms are used
to share both job-related and
personal interest content
Social
Media
11%
% of 100 Most Popular Shared Content Sources
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15. Top 25 Most Shared Industry Media Sources
1.
11.
Mashable
12.
2.
Business Insider
13.
3.
Business 2 Community
14.
4.
Hubspot Blog
5.
MarketingProfs
6.
TechCrunch
7.
Content Marketing Institute
8.
Advertising Age
9.
Social Media Today
10. VentureBeat
15
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
Leadtail B2B Marketers Social Insights Report – September 2013
BtoB Online
CMSWire
B2B Marketing Insider
Social Media Examiner
GigaOM
ZDNet
Mediapost
Eloqua Blog
All Things D
ClickZ
Search Engine Watch
eConsultancy
Salesforce
MediaBistro
eMarketer
#B2Bsocialinsights
16. Top 25 Most Shared Mainstream Media Sources
1.
11.
Forbes
12.
2.
Huffington Post
13.
3.
HBR Blogs
14.
4.
New York Times
5.
Inc. Magazine
6.
Fast Company
7.
WIRED
8.
Wall St. Journal
9.
Entrepreneur
10. USA Today
16
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
Leadtail B2B Marketers Social Insights Report – September 2013
BuzzFeed
WSJ Blogs
BusinessWeek
CNN
Washington Post
Bloomberg
NPR
Yahoo! Finance
Fast Co. Create
Quartz
Fast Co. Design
CNET News
The Verge
The Guardian
Medium
#B2Bsocialinsights
17. Actionable Insights
• B2B marketers read, tweet, and share both industry and
mainstream media content
• Top vendors are starting to cross the divide, becoming more like
publishers in the eyes of some B2B marketers (more on this in a
moment…)
Recommendation:
Use both industry and mainstream publications for your online
advertising, PR, and content marketing “bylines”
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18. Key Question:
Which vendors most influence B2B marketers?
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Leadtail B2B Marketers Social Insights Report – September 2013
19. Vendors Retweeted the Most by B2B Marketers
•
Leading B2B vendors are
increasingly becoming like
publishers
•
Which vendors are winning
the content marketing war to
reach and engage B2B
marketers?
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20. Top 50 Vendors Most Retweeted by B2B Marketers
11.
1.
@HubSpot
12.
13.
2.
@salesforce
14.
15.
3.
@Eloqua
4.
@marketo
5.
@forrester
6.
@LinkedIn
21.
7.
@Gartner_inc
23.
@ExactTarget
25.
8.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
22.
24.
26.
9.
@siriusdecisions
27.
28.
10.
@hootsuite
29.
30.
@kapost
@Pardot
@Oracle
@twitter
@SAP
@ShareThis
@Moz
@unbounce
@DnBUS
@Microsoft
@AMA_Marketing
@MakingTheNumber
@Adobe
@BoxHQ
@IDC
@Nimble
@linkedinselling
@marketingcloud
@McK_CMSOForum
@IBM
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
37.
38.
39.
40.
41.
42.
43.
44.
45.
46.
47.
48.
49.
50.
@Dell
@MailChimp
@KISSmetrics
@SproutSocial
@Loyalty360
@Impactbnd
@Silverpop
@CSC
@sellingtools
@SDL
@Demandbase
@Vocus
@AMAnet
@IBMbigdata
@Brainzooming
@Desk
@Dreamforce
@InsideSales
@Achievers
@ioninteractive
* Based on unique # of B2B marketers in the sample that retweeted the handle. Ties broken using Klout score followed by # of followers.
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21. Actionable Insights
• Top B2B vendors have not only embraced content marketing but
are truly becoming publishers in the eyes of B2B marketers
Recommendation:
Understand what top vendors are doing with their content marketing
and follow their lead to reach and engage B2B marketers
Best Practices:
So what are top vendors doing to make our list?
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22. Best Practices
• Enlist executives, influencers, and customer
advocates to share, mention, and retweet content
(Marketo)
• Deploy multiple handles to deliver targeted content to
specific audiences (Salesforce)
• Position their blogs as the hub of their content
marketing strategy (Hubspot)
• Publish compelling content that drives conversations
between B2B marketers at all levels (Eloqua)
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23. Key Question:
Which people most influence B2B marketers?
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Leadtail B2B Marketers Social Insights Report – September 2013
24. People Mentioned Most by B2B Marketers
Being mentioned is a sign that
a person is an active part of
the social dialogue
This word cloud shows the
people mentioned most by
B2B marketers
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25. Top 50 People Most Mentioned by B2B Marketers
11.
1.
@jaybaer
12.
13.
2.
@BrennerMichael
14.
15.
3.
@funnelholic
4.
@markwschaefer
5.
@briansolis
6.
@jowyang
21.
7.
@wittlake
23.
@mvolpe
25.
8.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
22.
24.
26.
9.
@HeinzMarketing
27.
28.
10.
@jonmiller
29.
30.
@rwang0
@ShellyKramer
@leeodden
@ardath421
@jeffbullas
@jchernov
@PamMktgNut
@TonyZambito
@ValaAfshar
@garyvee
@JoePulizzi
@jill_rowley
@Robert_Rose
@TedRubin
@JasonMillerCA
@mitchjoel
@dharmesh
@ckburgess
@TomPick
@GuyKawasaki
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
37.
38.
39.
40.
41.
42.
43.
44.
45.
46.
47.
48.
49.
50.
@GerryMoran
@MeghanMBiro
@dmscott
@MargaretMolloy
@juntajoe
@copyblogger
@smallbiztrends
@heidicohen
@DaveKerpen
@MargieClayman
@ariannahuff
@kimgarst
@ducttape
@bhalligan
@remarkmarketing
@jbecher
@EricTTung
@IanCleary
@cahidalgo
@Marketri
* Based on unique # of B2B marketers in the sample that mentioned the handle. Ties broken using Klout score followed by # of followers.
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26. Actionable Insights
• Key influencers build their “brand” by leveraging content: speaking
engagements, books, their own blogs, “bylines” and/or senior
positions: CMO, SVP, VP, etc. at leading vendors
Recommendation:
Follow these influencers, share their content, build relationships with
them… while you start building your own brand with B2B marketers
Best Practices:
So what are these people doing to make our list?
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27. Best Practices
• Top influencers tweet a LOT… 10 to 20+ times daily
• Create a consistent persona through original and
curated content
• Engage with other B2B marketers, vendors, and
publications on high profile topics of interest
• Use social channels to drive blog traffic, email
signups, event registrations, and audience growth on
other social media channels
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28. Key Question:
What are the main webinar takeaways?
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Leadtail B2B Marketers Social Insights Report – September 2013
29. Key Takeaways
1. Participate on more than one social network (LinkedIn and Twitter
are good choices) and look to experiment with others
2. Consider social media bio keywords and hashtags when
developing buyer personas, brand messaging, content
marketing, and direct sales strategies – Think Social SEO
3. Target the right media sources to drive your online
advertising, PR, and byline strategies
4. Invest in a robust content marketing strategy, and get your
executives, employees, and brand advocates involved in sharing it
5. Follow and engage top influencers, while you develop your
strategy for becoming one too!
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30. What’s Next?
•
Thanks for joining us for today’s webinar!
•
Engage us @DNNCorp or @Leadtail
•
Visit our websites to learn more:
http://www.dnnsoftware.com
http://www.leadtail.com
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